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French scientists can expect government measures aimed at coaxing them both
into the classroom and into industry. Francois Fillon, the country’s
minister for research, said last week that he will change the way science is
evaluated in France so that researchers are not judged solely by the number
of publications they produce but also by how much they contribute to
research and development in the commercial sector.

France ranks fourth in the world in its spending on research (2.4 per cent
of its GDP goes on R&D). According to the OECD, the ‘club’ of industrialised
nations, the difference between France and the countries ranked above it
lies not in the amount the government spends on research but in industry’s
investment in R&D. In outlining his broad plans for the next four years,
Fillon said the key to reviving France’s sagging economy is to get
scientists involved in creating new products and markets.

To achieve this, Fillon said he will try to make the rigidly hierarchical
career structure at France’s large research institutes, such as the CNRS
(the national research organisation), ‘less linear’ and more flexible, so
that researchers spend more time in industry and teaching at universities.
‘We must fight against the separation between universities and research
organisations,’ he said.

Fillon also promised to eliminate overlapping research in the five biggest
organisations, the CNRS, INSERM (France’s medical research council), INRA
(the national institute of agronomical research), the Pasteur Institute and
the nuclear agency CEA. He also called for decentralisation of power in the
institutes, saying it is ‘abnormal’ that decisions on appointments in
Marseilles, for instance, are decided in Paris.

While Fillon advocates big research projects in fields such as AIDS and
genetics, he did not announce any intention to increase spending on
research. But he said he is preparing to launch a wide debate on the
country’s research priorities this autumn.

Fillon also said he will support large projects in the aeronautics
industries. There is a risk that after the cancellation of the French-led
Hermes spaceplane last year, young scientists will be frightened away from
that area of research.

Speaking at the Paris Air Show last week, he called for the launch of
another European space capsule project to replace Hermes. He also announced
a possible reprieve for the Midi-Pyrenees Observatory (This Week, 29 May).
Fillon said if local and regional governments can come up with funds to
support its operations, it can remain open.